LG publishes patents for two foldable phone concepts

The mobile industry has been dreaming about folding smartphones for years at this point, but in 2018, we're closer to this becoming a reality than ever before. New details recently emerged about Samsung's "Galaxy X" foldable phone, and following this, new patents have been discovered for two folding phone concepts that LG has in the works.

Looking at LG's first concept, the device is made out of two individual bodies that house a single screen. You get a full, tablet-like display when the phone is open, but when you close it, you end up with a very narrow candy-bar shape. A second screen on the front shows information like the time and weather when it's closed, and on the back is a camera module.

The second version is mostly the same, but a back panel moves to the side to reveal a small transparent section of the main display that's used for notifications, time, date, etc.

LG's patents certainly look interesting and are likely the way of the future, but it's unclear if/when these will ever come to market. The patents were first filed back in July of 2017 before being published this month, and while that could be a sign that LG is ready to move forward with them, only time will tell if this turns out to be true.

If you had to choose between one of these two concepts as LG's foldable phone design, which do you prefer and why?

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